another amendment, i've joined with senator rubio, mccaskill and whitehouse to introduce amendment 3017 to curb the out-of-pocket prescription drug costs proposed to tricare beneficiaries. the department of defense has proposed increase in co-payments for tricare beneficiaries. in some cases, co-payments could almost double or even triple. for example, under the proposal, the out-of-pocket costs for a brand-name drug picked up at a local pharmacy would more than double, increasing from $12 to $26. ensuring the fiscal soundness of tricare is critical but we should limit the burden on beneficiaries in our efforts to shore up the problem. this amendment would cush the out-of-pocket prescription drug costs proposed for tricare beneficiaries. for instance, instead of paying $26 for a brand-name drug, a tricare beneficiary would pay $17 at a retail pharmacy, a $5 increase from last year, as opposed to a $14 increase. and d.o.d. would be prohibited from instituting dramatic increases in prescription drug co-payments in future years. co-payments could only increase at the rate of the annual cos